On Dec. 17, Micah Keller Shristi, who lived in Iowa City until August, went to
Iraq with a group called Voices in the Wilderness Peace Team. The Press-Citizen
is publishing Shristi's accounts that he is e-mailing to friends and colleagues.

BAGHDAD - Four Americans who lost family members in the Sept. 11 attacks met
today with Iraqi families who lost loved ones during the Gulf War.

The nearly two-hour conversation took place inside the Amariya Shelter, a
civilian bomb shelter in a residential neighborhood of Baghdad, which sustained
a direct hit from a precision-guided bomb on Dec. 13, 1991.

"A man who lost four relatives in the bombing started firing (accusations) at
us down in the shelter. He was obviously angry at the United States and
justifiably so," said Kristina Olsen, who lost her sister, Laurie, in the World
Trade Center attack. "Later, though, the same man came up to me, took my hand,
and invited me to be a guest at his house."

Members of the American delegation were impressed with the hospitality of Iraqis
they have met. "We've been offered cups of tea at every turn in the road, even
though our government has hurt these people so much through sanctions and
ongoing bombings," said Kathleen Tinley, whose uncle Michael was killed Sept.
11. "The people here are just so friendly."

The American delegation is visiting Iraq as part of September Eleventh Families
For Peaceful Tomorrows, an organization calling for peaceful diplomatic
solutions to global terrorism. An additional four American peace activists
accompany the four family members.

"People say bombing Iraq is going to make the world a safer place, but in
reality this will only create generations of pain and suffering on both sides,"
said delegation member Lenore Yarger.

Dialogue with ordinary Iraqi citizens is the major focus of the delegation's
visit to Iraq. The group's five-day itinerary includes visits with medical
professionals, Iraqi clergy, teachers and students, and an all-important
shopping trip to the suq or market.

On their visit to Basra in the southern no-fly-zone, the delegation hopes to
meet with family members of civilians killed in bombings during the last few
weeks.

"We're here to put a human face on these people, the so-called 'enemy.' In the
United States, they (Iraqis) are thought of as statistics or 'collateral
damage,'" said Thomas Gumbleton, delegation member and auxiliary bishop of the
Diocese of Detroit. "We're here to say these people are mothers and fathers
trying to raise happy, healthy children - people trying to live normal lives."

During an informal group discussion, delegation members pointed to oil as the
main motivation behind U.S. aggression. They agreed that a high-profile
mediator, such as Nelson Mandela or Desmond Tutu, is needed to help start
dialogue between Iraq and the United States.

Terry Rockefeller, who lost her sister Laura in the attack on the World Trade
Center, said, "We're just repeating the Gulf War. It's hard for me to believe
that two countries who are about to start killing each other are not talking
to each other."

"The only way to avert war is to make it politically advantageous to President
Bush," Gumbleton said. "If Bush can save face by saying he forced Saddam to
disarm, then peace is possible."

Drawing on her experience working with troubled adolescents, Colleen Kelly said,
"The U.S. is like a school yard bully, they aren't going to back down after
calling in all these troops and putting so much pressure on the UK and the other
allies."

Her brother, William, died in the World Trade Center on Sept. 11.

"It's really hard to say goodbye to the people I'm meeting here in Iraq. You
know, what do you say? 'I hope you don't get killed in a month?' I feel really
powerless, really awful," Rockefeller said.